Medieval

While not a Christian myself, I study the Middle Ages, so it's common to find treatises and texts from those deemed to be the spiritual masters. The vast majority of them are quite beautiful when not calling down some fire and brimstone upon those like myself who choose to see through the authoritarian nonsense, otherwise … Continue reading The Imitation of Christ by Thomas à Kempis

I'm a couple of days early in releasing this, yes. And that's ok. I wanted to do this when I had plenty of time to think about it. When I first sat down to begin writing this post, my mind went blank. It was as though this month didn't happen, or perhaps it was so … Continue reading July 2018 Overview and Assessments

A lot changed this past month. A lot. That's typically how things work. You dig the hole deeper until one day you realize you're either stuck and need help or you're wise enough to figure a way out on your own. No one ever accused me of being wise. Fact is, I was stuck a … Continue reading March 2018 Overview and Assessments

Having finally busted through The Silmarillion and having finally finished my exploration of Richard III, I find myself in the position of being compelled once more to tackle another of the "difficult" books of great literature. I do this from time to time, a carry over from my laughable experiences of high school and college. … Continue reading The Decameron: First Encounter with a Medieval Classic

A small handful of months ago, author Samantha Wilcoxson gave us a novella of the formidable Margaret Beaufort as part of her Plantagenet Embers series. This next novella features her equal and opposite number in the House of York, Elizabeth Woodville: The White Queen, as she's sometimes known. As Woodville is the mother of Elizabeth … Continue reading Once a Queen: A Story of Elizabeth Woodville by Samantha Wilcoxson

This is one of those times where a blog post hits under two different project banners for this site: Early Music Explorations and Just Listen: A Musical Spotlight. Sometimes it just works out that way. At any rate, I picked another album at random to blog about. Read on if you're interested. When it comes … Continue reading Ensemble Unicorn and Oni Wytars – Music of the Troubadours

There is virtually no one on my side of the screen who will appreciate this book the way I do. Don't get me wrong, there are people in my world who will appreciate aspects of it. Some will appreciate that it's just an old book. Some will appreciate the smell of it. But I'm curious … Continue reading Exploring The Ancrene Riwle

It's the most wonderful time of the year! Or so Andy Williams would tell you. Full of "scary ghost stories and tales of the glories of Christmases long, long ago-o-o-o-o." But what about those Christmases long, long ago? Have you ever considered where your favorite Christmas carols originate? Some of them probably aren't quite what … Continue reading Early Music Christmas Carols